2009-10 Yale Men's Football News

The Yale Football Team announced two additions to the class of 2014 bringing the total for the new class to 28. The additions include Loomis Chaffee School quarterback Jake Semones (in photo), the son of Yale football assistant coach Doug Semones, and receiver/defensive back Brandis Yarrington (Ann Arbor, Mich.).

Yale on YES is back for the 2010 football season. Three consecutive games from the famous Yale Bowl (Class of 54 Field) will air live on the YES Network this October. This is the third straight year Yale has partnered with the nations most-watched regional sports network.

Rick Flanders, Yale's associate head coach of football, and Bulldog assistant Kyle Metzler were among the more than 250 coaching volunteers at the seventh annual Lauren's First and Goal Football Camp at Lafayette College on June 6. Nearly 1,700 high school football players attended and helped raise more than $67,000 for Lauren's First and Goal Foundation for pediatric brain tumor research, cancer services and family support.

Twenty-six members of Yale Footballs Class of 2014 were introduced today. It is the first full class recruited by Tom Williams, the second-year Joel E. Smilow 54 Head Coach of Yale Football. The full class of newcomers will be 28, but two have yet to matriculate.

Six seniors and one team were honored by the Yale Athletics Department with awards at the annual senior student-athlete reception Saturday afternoon at the Lanman Center in Payne Whitney Gymnasium. The women's fencing team earned the Brodhead Award for highest team grade point average. Travis Henry (Lauderdale Lakes, Fla.) of the football team and Allison Mak (Richmond Hill, Ont.) of the gymnastics team were the recipients of the Ford Student-Athlete Community Outreach Award. Chris Labosky (Tallmadge, Ohio) of the mens cross country and track & field teams and Julia Weiser (Houston, Texas) of the field hockey team were the recipients of the Kiphuth Student-Athlete Distinction Award. Stephanie Colantonio (Watertown, Mass.) of the field hockey team and Ben Wescoe (La Jolla, Calif.) of the mens golf team were the recipients of the Meyer Humanitarian Award.

The Yale football team finished off its spring practice schedule in fine fashion today with its Blue-White Scrimmage at Yale Bowl. Approximately 500 fans turned out on the sun-splashed afternoon and saw plenty of big plays on both sides of the line.

Former Yale football and baseball coach Sam Burrell will be given the Polly Sweeten Excellence In Sports Award at the third annual Farnam Neighborhood House Sports Celebrity Breakfast on May 6, at 7:15 AM at Amarantes Sea Cliff.

The Yale football and womens ice hockey teams were facing a major challenge as they headed into their second annual Get in the Game. Save a Life. marrow donor testing drive Thursday afternoon at Commons. The Bulldogs had tested a record 704 people at last years drive -- and since all of those people were now already in the National Marrow Donor Programs Be the Match Registry, the two teams would have to find hundreds upon hundreds of new registrants this year in order to meet their goal of saving lives and keeping their record intact. The teams came up with a game plan, starting work on the project weeks in advance. And they got a reminder of just how important their work was earlier this week, when womens ice hockey forward Mandi Schwartz learned that she would have to return home to Saskatchewan to battle cancer again. Just hours after Schwartz left New Haven, the Bulldogs rallied together and shattered their own record by signing up 911 potential donors.

Kyle Metzler 02 has been named Yale Footballs new tight ends coach and recruiting coordinator. Metzler, who coached and served as video coordinator for the Bulldogs from 2003 to 2005, returns to Yale after four seasons at the United States Merchant Marine Academy, where he served as offensive coordinator, offensive line coach and recruiting coordinator.

The final preparations are in place for the marrow donor testing drive that the Yale football and womens ice hockey teams will lead on Thursday, Apr. 22, from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. at Commons. The testing consists of a simple cheek swab. The drive is free, open to the public and includes pizza and light lunch refreshments. The drive is part of the Get in the Game. Save a Life. campaign for the National Marrow Donor Program. Thousands of patients with leukemia and other life-threatening diseases depend on resources like the NMDPs Be The Match Registry to find a match. That includes Yale womens ice hockey forward Mandi Schwartz, who has been seeking a match ever since being diagnosed with leukemia.

On Monday, Apr. 19, at 7 p.m., yalebulldogs.com will present a special live video stream of "For God, for Country and for Yale Football: LIVE!" free of charge for viewers as the countdown to the annual Blue-White Spring Game on Saturday, April 24 continues. Monday's program will feature interviews with coaches, players and alums, and will be hosted by Ron Vaccaro '04, the Voice of Yale Football and a two-time Emmy winner for his work with NBC.

The countdown is on for the marrow donor testing drive that the Yale football and womens ice hockey teams will lead on Thursday, Apr. 22, from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. at Commons. In the spirit of breaking the record Yale established last year, when more than 700 potential life-saving donors signed up, the Bulldogs are taking an even more proactive approach this year. Last week, after an introductory meeting with an official from the National Marrow Donor Program and a speech from a recipient whose life was saved by a marrow donor, members of both teams stuck around Ray Tompkins House to pre-assemble hundreds of donor kits. That will save valuable time for everyone on the day of the drive itself. This Saturday, Yale womens ice hockey player Mandi Schwartz, a leukemia survivor, is scheduled to appear on New Channel 8 WTNHs Good Morning Connecticut Weekend at approximately 6:30 a.m.

Footballs zoomed all over the field, coaches blew whistles and student-athletes lined up to run plays wearing shorts, practice jerseys and helmets. The first day of Yale spring football practice began at 7 a.m. today on the fields behind the baseball stadium and ended with some stretching at 9. If you go out to watch one of the 11 practices or the April 24 Blue-White Game, heres what you need to know by position.

Thermometers in New Haven are registering numbers three touchdowns north of the current presidential approval rating, and that means its time for spring football practice to get underway.
This is the first in a regular series of features, both written and video, Ill be contributing to Yalebulldogs.com. While many will focus on the 2010 Bulldogs, an equally strong goal for this space is to highlight the tradition of Yale Football.

The 2010 Yale football season may be almost six months from kicking off, but on-field preparations are set to begin Monday, April 5, the first of 12 spring practice dates. The first 11 are practices on the fields behind the baseball stadium before the Blue-White scrimmage takes place on April 24 in Yale Bowl. The scrimmage time has yet to be determined but it will likely begin at 2 p.m.

Three members of the Yale football team will be participating in the Bulldogs Pro Day workout at 1 p.m. on March 25. Tight end A.J. Haase, defensive end Travis Henry and All-Ivy punter and placekicker Tom Mante will perform for scouts from the National Football League at Coxe Cage in New Haven.

The Yale football team and Yale womens ice hockey team will lead a marrow donor testing drive Thursday, Apr. 22, from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. at Commons, located on the corner of College Street and Grove Street in New Haven. The drive is free, open to the public and includes pizza and light lunch refreshments. News Channel 8 anchor Ann Nyberg will be on hand at the start of the drive to greet participants. The drive is part of the Get in the Game. Save a Life. campaign for the National Marrow Donor Program. Thousands of patients with leukemia and other life-threatening diseases depend on the NMDPs Be The Match Registry to find a match. The testing, which consists of a simple cheek swab, has a special meaning for the Yale athletics department because Bulldog womens ice hockey player Mandi Schwartz (Wilcox, Sask.) is a leukemia survivor and is in need of a marrow donor.

Ten Yale student-athletes were honored today, as the Ivy League released its list of those selected for Academic All-Ivy recognition in fall sports. Eligible student-athletes include all starters or key reserves on officially recognized varsity teams that have maintained a cumulative grade point average of 3.0 or higher.

Nine members of the Yale football team were named to the 2009 All-Ivy League Team announced today, including first-team selections TE John Sheffield (Portland, Ore), LB Paul Rice (Cleveland Heights, Ohio), DB Adam Money (Whiteland, Ind.) and P Tom Mante (Westford, Mass.).

The Yale football team held its annual post-season banquet Sunday afternoon at Commons. The Bulldogs saluted the 23 seniors on the team while also announcing the team award winners and introducing the 2010 captain, senior defensive lineman Tom McCarthy (Chester, N.J.).

Senior defensive lineman Tom McCarthy (Chester, N.J./Delbarton) has been elected captain of the Yale football team for the 2010 season after a vote by team members. McCarthy, the 133rd captain in Yale's history, was introduced at the annual team banquet Sunday at Commons.

The Yale football team (4-5, 2-4 Ivy) might be looking at this Saturday's season finale with Harvard (6-3, 5-1) at Yale Bowl and the Class of '54 Field as a chance to level the record, but it is fighting for much more. The Bulldogs, trying to snap a two-game skid, hope to grab the rivalry bragging rights for the first time in three years and an edge in the off-season recruiting battles. The 126th edition of The Game can be seen live on Versus and heard on WELI (AM-960, 960weli.com), WYBC (AM-1340, wybc.com) and on Sirius Satellite Radio. Carm Cozza and Ron Vaccaro '04 begin the commentary on WELI at 11:45 a.m. A video stream that includes their call will be available on yalebulldogs.com within an hour of the final whistle.

Harvard quarterback Collier Winters 32-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Chris Lorditch with 1:32 remaining capped a late comeback for Harvard and gave the Crimson a 14-10 win in the 126th edition of The Game Saturday afternoon at the Yale Bowl, Class of 1954 Field. The Crimson scored twice in the final 6:46 after being kept off the scoreboard on their first seven drives of The Game by the Yale defense, including a goal-line stand by the Bulldogs in the third quarter.

It has been almost a year since Yale senior forward Mandi Schwartz was diagnosed with leukemia, and seven months since her womens hockey teammates joined with the Yale football team for a record-setting marrow donor testing drive  a drive that helped save another leukemia patients life. As both of those teams get set to battle archrival Harvard this weekend in New Haven, Schwartz remains home in Saskatchewan, where she returned for treatment. But she is still very much on the minds of her many friends at Yale, and she recently checked in with some good news.

An early 14-0 deficit proved too much for the Yale junior varsity football team to overcome, and the Bulldogs fell to Harvard 35-26 in The JV Game Friday afternoon at Clint Frank Field. Sophomore wide receiver Chris Morris had a pair of touchdown catches for the Bulldogs.